Cityscape of the Boompjes in Rotterdam by Leo Luijten

A digital manipulation of an image with a view of the Boompjes in Rotterdam with a sailing inland ship on the river. The Boompjes is a Rotterdam boulevard along the Nieuwe Maas, between the Erasmus bridge and the Willemsbrug.

Around 1600 Rotterdam had developed into a land city and water city. The latter started at the Hoogstraat which at that time was usually called 'Middendam' and lay outside the Schielands Hoge Zeedijk. Between the Leuvehaven and the Oude Haven a promenade was constructed on which a double row of lime trees was planted in 1615. Willows were planted running down to the water. The advent of this lush greenery soon caused the Rotterdammers to call the quay 'De Boomptjens'.

Almost two centuries later, the rampart was renamed for a short period because of the birth of a child of Emperor Napoleon in 1811. The Tree was then renamed Quai Napoléon or Napoleon's Kaay.

The recreational function remained in the foreground until the 19th century. After 1878, with the construction of the Willemsbrug, the traffic function came to dominate. In the May days of 1940, the Boompjes was the front line, which led to a lot of damage. The bombardment of Rotterdam destroyed most of the buildings, including the Oostindisch Huis, the Swedish Zeeman's Church, and the synagogue of the Dutch Israelite Community.